Gabriela Dabrowski from Canada and Brazil’s Luisa Stefani progressed to the Round of 16 in the women’s doubles event at the U.S. Open, securing a 6-2, 7-5 victory against Italy’s Sara Errani and Austria’s Lilli Tagger on Saturday in New York.
The second-seeded Dabrowski, hailing from Ottawa, and Stefani converted five out of eight breakpoints. They successfully defended against four of the six breakpoints that Errani and Tagger had.
The match lasted for one hour and 27 minutes.
Dabrowski, a two-time U.S. Open doubles champion (2023, 2025), and Stefani will face Japan’s Eri Hozumi and Slovenia’s Andreja Klepac next, who advanced after defeating American Asia Muhammad and Hungary’s Fanny Stoller.
Earlier that day, Leylah Fernandez from Laval, Quebec, and Indonesia’s Janice Tjen lost 6-4, 6-4 to New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe and Indonesia’s Aldila Sutjiadi in the second round.
Fernandez and Tjen managed to convert just one of their six breakpoint opportunities, while the ninth seeds Routliffe and Sutjiadi capitalized on three of their five chances.
Fernandez was also eliminated from the women’s singles event in the third round on Friday, losing to American Jessica Pegula, the third seed.
Zverev maintains title ambitions
Alexander Zverev kept his pursuit of a second Grand Slam title alive with a straightforward victory over Alejandro Tabilo, while Coco Gauff displayed resilience to reach the fourth round of the U.S. Open amidst a wave of American exits on Saturday.
Naomi Osaka triumphed over both mental and physical challenges to defeat Belgium’s Elise Mertens in a tense three-set match held at Louis Armstrong Stadium.
Two promising young talents in the women’s draw, who are also close friends, delivered an exciting match as American Iva Jovic narrowly overcame Filipina Alexandra Eala in a thrilling battle on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
After a pair of intense five-set matches, top seed Zverev enjoyed a more comfortable night, overcoming a brief mid-match lull to defeat Chile’s Tabilo 6-2, 7-6(2), 6-2.
“I think today was definitely much better than the last couple of days. I think I improved a lot from the baseline,” Zverev remarked.
“I wasn’t satisfied with the second set. I lost focus a little towards the end of that set. My movement and play weren’t at their best. However, the first and third sets showed significant improvement compared to previous days. I will focus on that.”
Osaka defeats Mertens
Japanese 13th seed Osaka, a two-time U.S. Open champion, faced challenges after losing a set and break advantage but managed to overcome an Achilles issue to win against Mertens 6-3, 3-6, 7-5.
The match tested Osaka’s composure as much as her tennis skills, with the 28-year-old displaying visible frustration before regaining control in the final set.
“Honestly, I didn’t feel like I played amazingly, and that was really getting me down; I was quite negative towards myself, so I apologize for my behavior,” said an emotional Osaka.
Jovic, aged 18, and Eala, aged 21, exchanged momentum in a match that exceeded three hours before the American claimed victory 7-5, 3-6, 7-5. Jovic, the 14th seed, will next compete against fellow American and crowd favorite Gauff.
Earlier, fourth seed Gauff provided a much-needed boost for home fans by defeating Spain’s Cristina Bucsa 6-3, 6-4, as the 2023 champion aims for her third Grand Slam title.
Second seed Elena Rybakina pursued her goal for a third major title and the top position in the WTA rankings, moving forward with a 7-6(6), 6-3 victory over Yuliia Starodubtseva.
The Australian Open champion Rybakina avenged her second-round defeat to the Ukrainian at the French Open. The Kazakh athlete will face Osaka for a spot in the quarterfinals.
Iga Swiatek, the 2022 champion, won against Marie Bouzkova 7-6(3), 7-6(3), while French Open champion Mirra Andreeva advanced by defeating Nikola Bartunkova 6-2, 7-6(5).
American players face setbacks
The day commenced with a series of disappointing exits for American players.
Former U.S. Open finalists Taylor Fritz, Madison Keys, and Amanda Anisimova all fell in the third round, delivering a tough blow to local supporters at Flushing Meadows.
Ninth seed Fritz had won every set he played in New York leading up to this match and appeared on track for another easy win before Argentinian Francisco Cerundolo turned the match around to win 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.
This marked the earliest exit for the 2024 runner-up in four years, as Cerundolo now faces Belgium’s Alexander Blockx, who stunned fifth seed Flavio Cobolli 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-0, 6-3.
The American women had similar misfortunes, with China’s Zheng Qinwen recovering from a 5-0 deficit in the final set to defeat 2017 runner-up Keys 1-6, 7-6(3), 7-5 on the Grandstand, collapsing on the court in joy as she overcame a career slump.
The Olympic champion reached the quarter-finals for the second consecutive time just two years ago but had to qualify this time due to a chronic right elbow injury that hindered her progress.
Last year’s runner-up and 10th seed Anisimova was unable to change her fortunes in a challenging year at the majors, falling to Anastasia Potapova with a score of 6-2, 7-5.
Young American wildcard Michael Zheng also faced elimination, unable to complete a comeback against Frenchman Arthur Gea, losing 7-6(7), 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. Gea became only the second lucky loser to progress to the fourth round, following fellow countryman Corentin Moutet in 2022.
The day concluded positively for the home crowd, who rallied behind Learner Tien as he achieved a hard-fought 6-3, 1-6, 6-7(2), 6-3, 6-4 victory over Czech Jakub Mensik.
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